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Botanic gardens have been exchanging seeds through seed catalogues for centuries. In many gardens, these catalogues remain an important source of plant material. Living collections have become more relevant for genetic analysis and derived research, since genomics of non-model organisms heavily rely on living material. The range of species that is made available annually on all seed lists combined, provides an unsurpassed source of instantly accessible plant material for research collections. Still, the Index Seminum has received criticism in the past few decades. The current exchange model dictates that associated data is manually entered into each database. The amount of time involved and the human errors occurring in this process are difficult to justify when the data was initially produced as a report from another database. The authors propose that an online marketplace for seed exchange should be established, with enhanced search possibilities and downloadable accession data in a standardised format. Such online service should preferably be supervised and coordinated by Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI). This manuscript is the outcome of a workshop on July 9th, 2015, at the European botanic gardens congress "Eurogard VII" in Paris, where the first two authors invited members of the botanic garden community to discuss how the anachronistic Index Seminum can be transformed into an improved and modern tool for seed exchange.
Sansevieria pfennigii, which to date has been a doubtful species, is confirmed as extant by a recent collection from the Lindi Region in southern Tanzania. The original description of the species, which is based on herbarium material only, is here emended based on additional observations recorded from living plants, including fruits that were previously unknown. Sansevieria pfennigii distinguishes from S. canaliculata, to which it was repeatedly assigned, by its capitate instead of elongate inflorescence, rough rather than smooth leaves, non-pungent instead of pungent leaf tips, dull green leaf colour, more delicate overall appearance, alongside other traits. The difference in inflorescence architecture indicates that these species belong to different groups within Sansevieria and are not closely related; the closest relatives of S. pfennigii are probably S. fischeri and S. stuckyi. Sansevieria pfennigii occurs on well-drained soil in forests, close to S. canaliculata populations. According to the extent of the population seen and the species' overall rarity, it is tentatively assessed as critically endangered.
Aim and Location In Central European lowland certain plant species grow mainly or exclusively in the corridors of large rivers. In German-speaking plant geography, they are known as "Stromtalpflanzen". The aim of this paper is to review the literature about definitions, explanations and species characteristics and to suggest future directions in research concerning this species group. Results A preliminary list contains 129 ecologically heterogeneous plant species. The mechanisms generating the peculiar distribution pattern may include hydrochory along river corridors, high level of disturbance by water, variable water availability including inundation and summer drought, warm summers, and high nutrient supply on alluvial soils. There is evidence from observational studies for all above mechanisms. However, none of them has been tested experimentally. Demographic data of river corridor plants is limited to very few species, including mainly invasive annuals (Artemisia annua, Bidens frondosa, Cuscuta campestris, Xanthium albinum) and annual (hemi)parasites (Cuscuta campestris, Melampyrum cristatum). Metapopulation studies do not exist to date for European species. part from their habitat requirements, river corridor plants were grouped according to their similarities in overall distribution pattern or in their distribution within particular river corridors. Main conclusions River corridor plants include a high proportion of threatened plant species. In order to preserve them, and in order to understand the mechanisms generating the peculiar distribution pattern, much more has to be known about their population biology and metapopulation dynamics.
Rivers form the most important natural corridors through the landscape. Certain plant species grow mainly or exclusively in these corridors as it has been observed for about 150 years in Central European lowlands. However, these species do not form a homogenous group in terms of biogeography, site requirements, life form, or any other feature this distribution pattern. Accordingly, first, we give a review of the various hypotheses which have been proposed to explain the river corridor distribution pattern. This includes (1) river corridors acting as routes of migration or invasion, (2) floodplain-specific disturbance providing open sites, (3) temporary anoxic conditions during floods, (4) deviating meso-climatic conditions, (5) specific substrate and nutrient supply, and (6) water supply. In particular, the above hypotheses (2-5) imply that river corridor plants may be well-adapted to specific stress and regeneration conditions in floodplains while other species may be not. This may lead to reduced competition in river corridors. We suggest this mechanism to constitute actual benefits for river corridor plants. Secondly, we present a simple model of multi-species population dynamics to show, that our competition-related framework is, in principle, able to explain river corridor plant species distribution patterns. As, however, none of the above hypotheses (1-6) have been tested experimentally we thirdly present a currently running experimental study on the river corridor plant Juncus atratus (black rush) in north- eastern Germany. We emphasize that much more experimental evidence must be gained on population ecology and meta- population dynamics to understand the distribution patterns of river corridor plants.
Relationships between different measures of succulence and Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM; defined here as nocturnal increases in tissue acidity) were investigated in leaves of ten species of Sansevieria under greenhouse conditions. CAM was found in seven of the ten species investigated, and CAM correlated negatively with leaf thickness and leaf hydrenchyma/chlorenchyma ratio. Similarly, CAM correlated negatively with leaf water content, but only when expressed on a fresh mass basis. CAM was not correlated with "mesophyll succulence", but weakly with leaf chlorophyll concentration. These results indicate that CAM is associated more with "all-cell succulence" and not with the amount of leaf hydrenchyma in the genus Sansevieria. The findings of this study emphasize the importance of defining the nature of "leaf succulence" in studies of photosynthetic pathways and leaf morphology. Evidence is also provided that CAM and succulence arose multiple times in the genus Sansevieria.
The long-term persistence of populations and species depends on the successful recruitment of individuals. The generative recruitment of plants may be limited by a lack of suitable germination and establishment conditions. Establishment limitation may especially be caused by the competitive effect of surrounding dense vegetation, which is believed to restrict the recruitment success of many plant species to small open patches ('safe sites'). We conducted experiments to clarify the roles of germination and seedling establishment as limiting processes in the recruitment of Juncus atratus Krock., a rare and threatened herbaceous perennial river corridor plant in Central Europe. Light intensity had a positive effect on germination. However, some seedlings emerged even in total darkness and the germination rate at 1% light intensity was more than half of that at 60% light intensity. Seedling establishment in the field after 10 weeks was 30% on bare ground, but it was close to zero in grassland. Establishment in the growth chamber after 8 weeks was close to 75% for seedlings that germinated underwater, but only about 35% for seedlings that germinated afloat. Furthermore, establishment decreased with flooding duration on bare ground, but increased with flooding duration in grassland. These data indicate that establishment, rather than germination, is a critical life stage in Central European populations off. atratus. They furthermore indicate that the competition of surrounding vegetation for water limits seedling establishment under field conditions without flooding, largely restricting establishment success to bare ground habitats. In contrast, grassland is more suitable for the recruitment off. atratus than bare ground under prolonged flooding. Grassland may facilitate the establishment off. atratus seedlings during long- lasting floods by supplying oxygen to the soil through aerenchyma. The shift from competition to facilitation in grassland occurred after 30 days of flooding, i.e. within the ontogeny of individual plants. The specific recruitment requirements off. arrows may be a main cause of its rarity in modern Central Europe. In order to prevent regional extinction off. atratus, we suggest maintaining or re-establishing natural hydrodynamics in the species' habitats.
Ex situ cultivation in botanic gardens could be one possibility to preserve plant species diversity and genetic variation. However, old ex situ populations are often sparsely documented. We were able to retrieve three different ex situ populations and their source in situ populations of the endangered plant species Silene otites after 20-36 years of isolation. Furthermore, three additional wild populations were included in the analysis. Population genetic diversity and differentiation were analysed using AFLP markers. Genetic variation in the ex situ populations was lower than the variation found in the in situ populations. Strong differentiation (F-ST = 0.21-0.36) between corresponding in situ and ex situ populations was observed. Bayesian clustering approach also showed a distinct genetic separation between in situ and ex situ populations. The high genetic differentiation and loss of genetic diversity during spatial and temporal isolation in the ex situ populations can be attributable to small population sizes and unconscious selection during cultivation. Therefore, adequate sampling prior to ex situ cultivation and large effective population sizes are important to preserve genetic diversity. Near-natural cultivation allowing for generation overlap and interspecific competition without artificial selection is recommended as being best for the maintenance of the genetic constitution.
Heterostyly is a wide-spread floral adaptation to promote outbreeding, yet its genetic basis and evolutionary origin remain poorly understood. In Primula (primroses), heterostyly is controlled by the S-locus supergene that determines the reciprocal arrangement of reproductive organs and incompatibility between the two morphs. However, the identities of the component genes remain unknown. Here, we identify the Primula CYP734A50 gene, encoding a putative brassinosteroid-degrading enzyme, as the G locus that determines the style-length dimorphism. CYP734A50 is only present on the short-styled S-morph haplotype, it is specifically expressed in S-morph styles, and its loss or inactivation leads to long styles. The gene arose by a duplication specific to the Primulaceae lineage and shows an accelerated rate of molecular evolution. Thus, our results provide a mechanistic explanation for the Primula style-length dimorphism and begin to shed light on the evolution of the S-locus as a prime model for a complex plant supergene.
Managing open habitats by wild ungulate browsing and grazing a case-study in North-Eastern Germany
(2011)
Question: Can wild ungulates efficiently maintain and restore open habitats?
Location: Brandenburg, NE Germany.
Methods: The effect of wild ungulate grazing and browsing was studied in three successional stages: (1) Corynephorus canescens-dominated grassland; (2) ruderal tall forb vegetation dominated by Tanacetum vulgare; and (3) Pinus sylvestris-pioneer forest. The study was conducted over 3 yr. In each successional stage, six paired 4 m(2)-monitoring plots of permanently grazed versus ungrazed plots were arranged in three random blocks. Removal of grazing was introduced de novo for the study. In each plot, percentage cover of each plant and lichen species and total cover of woody plants was recorded.
Results: Wild ungulates considerably affected successional pathways and species composition in open habitats but this influence became evident in alteration of abundances of only a few species. Grazing effects differed considerably between successional stages: species richness was higher in grazed versus ungrazed ruderal and pioneer forest plots, but not in the Corynephorus sites. Herbivory affected woody plant cover only in the Pioneer forest sites. Although the study period was too short to observe drastic changes in species richness and woody plant cover, notable changes in species composition were still detected in all successional stages.
Conclusion: Wild ungulate browsing is a useful tool to inhibit encroachment of woody vegetation and to conserve a species-rich, open landscape.